Spots and Claws and Everything In-Between
by khaleesimaka
Summary: High school students by day. Superheroes by night. Usually. Soul and Maka are the new Chat Noir and Ladybug respectively and slowly learn how to juggle being normal kids while also saving Death City from the clutches of evil. It's not always easy, but they have each other which makes it a little better. Miraculous Ladybug AU. Collection of one shots in same AU.


**A/N: This was inspired by the artwork of a-mate-has-drawings over on tumblr where she drew Soul and Blair was his kwami. I adored thinking of the relationship between the two so much that I had to write something. Definitely check out her art. It's adorable. And I hope y'all enjoy this.**

* * *

Soul thunked his head against his locker as a heavy sigh passed through his lips. It had been yet another long and difficult day at school. His teachers had all but yelled at him to get his ass in shape and start studying, his father hadn't wasted any time in reprimanding him over his report card, and to make matters worse, he had forgotten about his presentation that morning in French. Sometimes he wished his superhero alter-ego came with the ability to reverse time rather than destroy.

"Hey," came an overly cheerful voice behind him that he recognized as Maka's. "Rough day today, huh?"

Despite everything, he smiled at her presence. The girl definitely had a way of tying knots around his heart and sending his skin to burn merely by being near him.

"What was your first clue?" he asked, pushing himself away from the locker and glancing back at her.

Her green eyes were warm and bright, her smile a mixture of comfort and pity as she stared at him. The roughness of the day must have been blatant on his face. Usually Maka didn't look at him like that unless he was in a mood or being ruder than normal, and today definitely counted toward the former.

"You did good on your presentation, at least," she offered.

A dry laugh escaped him. "Sure. If you don't pay attention to the fact that I stumbled over half of it and forgot to save my slides on my flash drive." Sorrow evident in his voice, he added, "Pretty sure I got a D. And that's mostly because Miss Mjolnir felt sorry for me."

"It could've been worse."

"What's worse than failing basic French, Maka?" Facing his back to her, he fiddled with the lock to his locker and muttered, "I'm already failing and my dad's pissed at me. Pretty sure that makes it worse," to himself.

Silence followed. He filled it by the sound of his books slamming against the metal of his locker, praying and hoping Maka hadn't heard him. The last thing he needed was to make things awkward between them by exposing a part of him that barely anyone knew about. Especially when that person happened to be his crush.

Soul glanced down when he heard Maka rummaging through her own locker. Instead of putting her books back inside, she busied herself by placing them in her backpack. What shocked him the most was when she jammed their large chemistry book between their English and math one. The head of the swan on the cover poked out over her canvas backpack as she struggled to zip it back up, giving up eventually when it proved to be useless. She slung it on her back, closed her locker, and stood up.

"What?" she asked upon seeing his slack jaw and raised brows.

"You just jammed the heaviest books in existence into your backpack."

"We have an exam next week, and I like to be prepared," she shrugged.

"I know, but I've never seen anyone take two _thick_ books back home with them," he told her. "How are you standing up straight without tipping over?"

Her cheeks gained a little color and she shook her head. "It's nothing. I have really strong back muscles from doing this since I came to high school. I'm used to it."

He snorted as he zipped up his practically empty backpack. The only contents inside were his notebook that held his notes and lame doodles along with a few pens and pencils that sat unorganized. Maybe some crumbs from his Cheetos from earlier.

"You're such a nerd. You know that?"

"I do. Thanks," she said a little dry. "You and Black*Star never fail to remind me of that. Maybe you two can learn something from me, especially considering you're failing a few classes?"

Her word choice and the implication behind them caused him to flinch as well as told him that had indeed heard him before. There wasn't any malice or ill-intentions behind it, though. She didn't remind him of his father's furious text or the stern conversation his teacher had with him. It almost seemed as if Maka _cared_ that he might fail.

"So you heard me?"

"You kinda said it right in front of me. It was hard not to hear."

"Should've known."

They stood there staring at each other for a few seconds, Maka tipping back and forth on her feet at the same time she bit her lip. She paused in her motion to scratch the back of her calf with her foot. Soul averted his gaze from her to where Black*Star and Tsubaki were, no doubt waiting for them. He made to comment about it to Maka, but she beat him to the punch.

"You know," she started, "if you ever need any help, I can always tutor you. I don't mean to brag, but I am one of the top students in our class so I'm sure I can help you."

Soul blinked. "Really? You'd be willing to waste time helping me?"

"It wouldn't be wasting time. We'll both be studying for the same exams so it'll help me out as well. Like killing two birds with one stone?"

"That simile's a little brutal, but I'll take you up on that offer."

"It's a metaphor, not a simile," she said, the corners of her mouth twitching slightly.

"You haven't even started, and I'm already learning from you," he grinned.

Maka smiled and laughed, a little shaky and nervous. "How about we start tomorrow then? Meet you in the library when school ends?"

"Sounds good."

"Alright. I'll see you then." She gave him a little wave, the toes of her sneakers bending as she began to walk backwards. "Bye, Soul."

"Bye, Maka."

She bounced toward their friends, and Soul watched her go. The slight warmth that had been surrounding his heart slowly washed over his skin like a gentle, calming wave. He didn't need to look beside him to know that Blair, his kwami, had floated out of his bag and was giving him the sly look she always gave him after an encounter with Maka.

"Studying together now," she cooed. "You two are improving on your relationship, I see."

"It's exactly what it sounds like, Blair," he said, turning toward the little cat. "Studying."

"More like a study date."

"Not a date. Maka doesn't like me like that. You know that."

Blair floated over and poked the side of his nose with a giggle. "Yeah, but you do. This kitten's smitten by blonde pigtails and beautiful green eyes that remind him of emeralds."

"You read my journal again, didn't you?"

"Maaaybe."

"Sneaking cat," he mumbled to himself.

"There were also a few other _interesting_ things in there," Blair continued. "Like the fact that she puffs her cheeks when she's mad, and how you enjoy teasing her, and-"

A small yelp left Blair's tiny body as Soul wrapped his hand around her tail and tugged the kwami down and stuffed her back in his bag. "Come on. We need to be heading home before Dad gets mad that I'm late for piano lessons. Again."

The heat that blossomed on his cheeks by her words, though, didn't go unnoticed by him.

* * *

The next day in the library, Soul sat beside Maka, listening to her spew out equations and numbers and names that made absolutely zero sense to him. He tried to keep up, but all he heard were the noises that the adults made in a Charlie Brown cartoon. It was rubbish. None of it was registering in his brain, and he hated it. Despised it, actually. A part of him wished he had the capacity to understand what she was trying to explain to him, but he knew it was futile.

His future was no doubt going to rely on the good ol' Evans name. Performing Mozart to snobby musicians and being scrutinized every second of every day just to make a good buck.

That thought made him sick.

"I give up," he said, tossing his pencil down in the process. "None of this makes sense. I'm probably better off spending this next week creating an elaborate cheat sheet for me to look at during the exam."

Maka sighed, picked up his pencil, and set it back in his hand. "You're not going to resort to cheating because that's low. Even for you. Maybe not for someone like Black*Star, but definitely for someone like you."

"How do you even know that?" he countered, doubt and anxiety and fear clouding his mind and senses. The desire to storm out of the library and out of the suddenly stuffy room was strong as it built up within him. He was more than willing to do whatever it took to do so as well. Which was good or bad depending on the situation.

This situation in particular meant it was bad.

"Because I know you. You're not someone who gives up so easily."

"Pfft. Yeah, sure. If that's your answer then you really don't know me 'cause I give up easier than anyone else. Just ask my dad."

Hard green eyes fixed themselves on him, and Soul turned away from them. He didn't much care for the determined look that etched itself beneath her beautiful gaze or the way her brows furrowed in frustration.

"Soul." Her voice echoed the firmness that he had tried to avoid. "You're not someone who gives up because you're a fighter. I've watched you try to make sense out of your science and math homework before. I know you're always the last one to turn in their exam because you like to go over your answers before you deem yourself done. I don't know about you, but those are some really solid examples that you're not the person you think you are. You can get this. I believe in you."

The gooey warmth that he had grown accustomed to when she was around spread over his chest like watercolor on paper and bloomed on his cheeks. He took a couple seconds to compose himself - to be sure that his emotions weren't evident on his face - before turning to look at her, but he knew it was useless the moment he did so. That determination he heard was clear on her face; from her eyes to her mouth, it was all there.

A new emotion surfaced with the others, one he had only felt when his brother praised him for his music or his mother comforted him after a rough practice session. It was endearing and welcoming. And the heat on his cheeks only deepened.

Suddenly, he became overly aware of how close she was to him. Their noses only inches apart, and his lips tingled with the desire to close the distance between them. That thought only caused his eyes to quickly dart to her mouth where he noted how gorgeously pink and wet they were, almost in the shape of a heart. Definitely kissable lips if he ever saw any.

But this was his best friend. He knew his feelings for her were unrequited through the countless conversations they had. They were only friends - _best friends_ at that. She didn't hold the same feelings like he held for her.

Then, she tipped forward slightly, and Soul thought for the briefest of moments that she was going to kiss him before excusing it with his own desires. A trick of the mind, and nothing else.

"Uh," he began before falling flat.

Pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind, he raised his hand to scratch the back of his neck and stared down at the book in front of him. The words began to unscramble themselves and spread out to almost coherent sentences that he fully comprehended. At least, as much as his knowledge on the subject allowed. Equations and numbers made somewhat sense as they broke apart into actual things rather than blotches of black ink. It was weird the effect that Maka's words had on him, but if he said they didn't spark his own determination, he'd be lying.

"So let's keep studying until you're able to get it?" she pushed, her voice calm as if nothing had happened in that minute.

As if Soul's heart wasn't racing and his hands weren't itching to touch her.

"Um, yeah. That'd be... that's cool," he mumbled.

Hunching forward, he wrapped his body around his book and pulled his notebook toward him so that he could do the problem before him. He became overly aware of his behavior and surroundings, though, as he did so. Every part of him felt on edge and awkward. Maka leaned toward him and started explaining the problems again, telling him how to balance compounds and giving out the basics.

It all started to make sense. Barely. But it was a start.

She moved slightly, and the smell of her body wash invaded his sense. It was a mixture of peppermint and apple. A smell that wasn't exactly enticing on their own, but on her, they were intoxicating and wonderful. He found himself leaning closer to her to get a better smell without making it weird or creepy. His eyes dipped down to where the strands of her pigtails cascaded down to curtain her face, exposing a bit of her neck in the process.

He imagined himself pressing his lips there, flicking his tongue out to taste her, and wondering what _exactly_ she would taste like. He pictured her eyes fluttering closed as he did so, a small sigh filling the quiet space between them. The turn of her head before her lips met his and lazily, clumsily moved in time with his own. A small moan building up in the back of his throat when her hands knitted in his hair and deepened the kiss. His own hand sliding down the curve of her back while the other cupped-

Soul abruptly stood from his chair.

"I gotta go to the restroom!" he blurted out.

Friends definitely weren't supposed to have these kind of thoughts about other friends, and he needed to cool down.

"Uh, okay."

Stalking away, Soul swung his arms stiffly at his side as he made his escape to the farthest bookshelf he could find. He pressed his back against it and sighed. What was wrong with him? Usually he knew perfectly well how to keep his cool around Maka, but now he felt himself withering into a hopeless boy whose crush had developed into more than just that. It was weird and strange and-

"Finding it difficult to be _cool_ around Maka, huh?" Blair said as she floated up to his face.

"Blair," he growled, swatting at the kwami who only floated out of his reach. "I don't need one of your talks right now."

"Oh, I think you do," she cooed. "Because I can tell you exactly what this is."

"And what would that be?"

" _Love_."

"Don't be ridiculous," he brushed off, though a voice in his head told him otherwise. "It's not love because I only-"

"You smelled her hair," Blair said, crossing her paws in front of her. "Don't think I missed that, mister. And don't think I don't know where your thoughts were headed back there. You wanted to kiss her. Passionately! You've never wanted to kiss her like that before!"

"That doesn't mean-"

"It does mean something," she cut in. "You've been crushing on Maka since you came to this school, since you two had a moment out on the steps in the rain, and now it's come to this. You're not just crushing on her anymore. You've fallen in _love with her_."

The way she said it made it taste and sound sweet, but Soul still grimaced.

"You say it like it's a good thing."

"It is! It means you're growing up, and soon you'll be-"

"Don't finish that. Please. You're supposed to be innocent, remember?"

"I am the cat kwami. We're supposed to be-"

"You're not going to be that with me, okay?"

"Alright," she sighed. "But that still doesn't take away the fact that you're falling for Maka. Does it?"

Soul's gaze flittered from her to the ground and back to her. He knew she was right. She had been right about so many things before that this was no different.

"I guess," he finally said.

Blair giggled and nuzzled up to him, her little arms wrapping as much of his face as they could so that she hugged him.

"But that doesn't mean anything's gonna change. Maka still only sees me as a friend. I'll be crushing on her from one side of the room with no hope of her coming over to meet me, and that's it."

"Don't be a grumpy pants. Let's just enjoy this new development for the time being," she waved off. "My little kitten is growing up and falling for girls! I need to rejoice! With some good ol' sushi. What do ya say?"

A half-smile fell on his face as he shook his head. "As much as I don't mind the taste of fish, I wish you preferred something that was more on the cooked side. I'm getting tired of smelling like raw fish."

"If Maka liked it, you wouldn't mind," she teased.

"Maka hates fish, actually."

Blair tapped her paw over her cheek as she pondered his words. "You're right. We can't have you walking around smelling like that then. Maka will never fall for you if that's the case."

"She's not going to fall for me either way," he muttered under his breath.

"Stop being negative, and think positive, Soul!"

Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, he sighed and snorted at the kwami's enthusiasm and hope. She definitely was a different breed if he ever saw one. Sometimes he wondered what Ladybug's kwami was like. If her's was anything like he is, and if not, maybe she wanted to switch sometime.

* * *

Maka watched as Soul walked away from her, her heart slightly tearing at the sight. She had thought for a minute there that he was definitely going to kiss her, but ended up disappointed that he hadn't. A part of her really wished he had kissed her while another part was afraid of him doing so. It would have changed the whole dynamic of their friendship, pushed them into a territory she hadn't yet treaded in, and flipped things upside down. So maybe in the end it was best that it ended the way it did. With him walking away.

Though, she did have to admit, that a kiss from Soul Evans would have been nice.

Really nice.

Sighing, she rested her chin on her palm. "Feelings are so annoying."

"You'll get him next time," her kwami whispered from her backpack.

She glanced down at it and smiled. "Yeah. Maybe."


End file.
